Multi-compartment tray



June 19, 1962 M. w. KUCHENBECKER 3,039,672

MULTICOMPARTMENT TRAY Filed Dec. 9, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet l F /'g. l

6\ 26b 40b E 26 4|o 270 Q 21 42a 280 June 19, 1962 M. w. KUCHENBECKER 3,039,672

MULTI-COMPARTMENT TRAY Filed Dec. 9, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. IB .0 W

36a 2lu June 19, 1962 M. w. KUCHENBECKER 3,039,672

MULTI-COMPARTMENT TRAY Filed Dec. 9, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 United States Patent 3,039,672 MUL'II-COMPARTMENT TRAY Morris W. Kuchenbecker, Neenah, Wis., assignor to American Can Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Dec. 9, 1960, Ser. No. 74,947 1 Claim. (Cl. 229-28) This invention relates to a multi-compartment tray made from a single blank of flexible sheet material. The tray can be collapsed and shipped in flat folded condition to the user and can be readily set up to provide a multicompartment tray,

Further advantages and details of the present tray construction will be apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a blank suitably scored and cut for making a tray,

FIGURE 1A is a plan view of the blank shown in FIG- URE 1 partially folded and glued,

FIGURE 1B is a plan view of the same blank at a further stage of folding and glueing,

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the blank shown at a further stage of folding and glueing,

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the blank shown in FIG- URE 2 after being folded over along hinge line 10a,

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view of the tray taken on line 4-4 of FIGURE 3,

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the partially set up y;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view similar to FIGURE 5 at a later stage in setting up the tray,

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view similar to FIGURE 6 showing the tray at a further stage of being set up,

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the same tray com pletely set up, and

FIGURE 9 is a perspective view of the same tray positioned with its open end upwardly.

Referring to the drawings, the tray is formed preferably from a single blank of suitable flexible sheet material, such as cardboard, cardboard laminated to metal foil, metal foil, plastic sheet material and the like. The blank is suitably cut and scored to provide an inner panel 10 having at one end successively hinged thereto end panel 11 and side panel 16 along hinge score lines 11a and 16b, respectively. At the other end of panel 10 are successively hinged end panel 21, side panel 24, partition panel 25, connecting panel 26, partition panel 27 and adhesion panel 28, respectively, along hinge lines 100, 21a, 25a, 26b, 27a and 28a. Panel 11 has a closure flap 12 hinged thereto along score line 12a, and similarly panel 21 has a closure flap hinged thereto along score line 20a. Bottom closure panel 18, hinged to panel 16 along score line 18b, is provided with a slit 19 for receiving a locking tongue. Bottom closure panel 22, hinged to panel 24 along score line 22b, similarly is provided with a slit 23 for receiving a locking tongue.

The blank is also provided with an inner panel 30 hinged to panel 10 along hinge line 10a. Connected to one end of panel 30 along score line 31a are successively hinged end panel 31 and side panel 32 hinged along score line 32b. Panel 32 is separated from panel 16 along out line 1. Closure flap 33 is hinged to panel 31 along score line 33a. A bottom closure panel 34 is hinged to panel 32 along score line 34b. Closure panel 34 is provided with a locking tongue 35. Panel 31 is separated from panel 11 by out line 2. The other end of sleeve panel 30 is provided with a series of hinged panels 36, 38, 39, 40, 41 and 42, hinged respectively along score lines 30b, 36a, 39a, 40b, 41a and 42a, corresponding to the panels previously described. Closure flap 37 is hinged to panel Patented June 19, 1962 36 along score line 37a. Bottom closure panel 44 is hinged to panel 38 along score line 44b. Panel 44 is provided with a locking tongue 45 Panels 36 and 21 are separated by cut line 3. Panels 38 and 24 are separated by cut line 4. Panels 39 and 25 are separated by out line 5. Panels 40 and 26 are separated by cut line 6. Panels 41 and 27 are separated by cut line 7. Panels 42 and 28 are separated by out line 8.

Panels 10 and 30 are preferably of the same dimensions. Likewise, panels 21 and 36, panels 11 and 31, panels 16 and 32, panels 24 and 38, panels 18 and 22, panels 34 and 44, end flaps 12, 33, 20 and 37 are of the same dimensions.

In forming the tray construction from the blank as described, combined panels 26, 27 and 28 are folded over on hinge line 26b so that panel 28 is superposed on panel 24 and suitably adhered thereto at area 24b, as shown in FIGURE 1A. Combined closure flap 22 and panels 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28 are then folded over as a unit on hinge line 21a, and area 26a of panel 26 (shown in FIGURE 1A) is suitably adhered to the contacting surface area 10b of panel 10, so as to assume the position as shown in FIGURE 1B.

Combined panels 40, 41 and 42 shown in FIGURE 1 are then folded on hinge line 40b so as to bring panel 42 into face contact with panel 38 and is suitably adhered thereto at area 38b as shown in FIGURE 1A. Combined closure flap 44 and panels 38, 39, 40, 41 and 42 are then folded over on hinge line 36a and area 40a of panel 40 is adhered to the contacting surface area 30a of panel 30 (shown in FIGURE 1A), so as to assume the position shown in FIGURE 1B. Adhesive is applied to areas 18a, 16a, 32a and 34a of panels 18, 16, 32 and 34, respectively, as shown in FIGURE 1B. Panels 30 and 10, having the panels superposed thereon, as previously described, and shown in FIGURE 13, are then folded over along hinge lines 31a and 16b to assume the position shown in FIGURE 2, whereby the adhesive coated areas mentioned are adhered to respective contacting areas 22a, 24a, 38a and 44a, respectively, of panels 22, 24, 38 and 44. The folded and adhered blank shown in FIGURE 2 is then folded along score line 10a to assume the final flat folded condition shown in FIGURE 3. Although the initial folding of the left hand side of the blank has been described as occurring separately from the folding of the right hand side, preferably the folding and adhering of the two corresponding sides would occur simultaneously.

In using the tray construction, the flat folded tray shown in FIGURE 3 is a set up by first folding panels 11, 25, 27 and 21 at right angles to panel 10 and also simultaneously folding panels 31, 39, 41 and 36 at right angles to panel 30, as shown in FIGURE 5. Panels 10 and 30 will then be folded along hinge line 10a into abutting relation as shown in FIGURES 4 and 5. Flaps 12 and 20 are then folded over their respective adjacent terminal cells. Combined closure panels 18 and 22 are then folded over the open end of the partitions as shown in FIGURE 6. Flaps 33 and 37 are then folded over panels 18 and 22, respectively, as shown in FIGURE 7. Combined panels 34 and 44 are then folded over panels 18 and 22 and tongues 35 and 45 are inserted through slits 19 and 23, respectively, so as to lock the overlapped closure panels, as shown in FIGURE 8. The tray is then turned over and positioned on the closed closure flaps so as to expose the upper open ends of the partitions, as shown in FIG- URE 9. Any suitable articles may then be positioned in the aligned cells, such as bakery products, confections, fruits, vegetables, hardware items and the like.

It will be noted that the tray construction can beco-nsidered as comprising a pair of collapsible sleeves hinged together along hinge line 10a, each of the sleeves hav- 3 ing a plurality of partitions to form compartments therein. Referring to FIGURE 4, one sleeve is formed by successively connected panels 31, 32, 38, 36 and 30. The other sleeve is formed by successively connected panels 11, 16, 24, 21 and 10.

The specific details of the various elements may obviously be modified. The number of partitions used may be less or more than those shown in the illustrative embodiment of the invention previously described or may be entirely eliminated so as to merely provide two hinged open-ended sleeve portions without any internal partitions and cells.

I claim:

A collapsible multi-compartment tray formed from an integral blank comprising a pair of hingedly connected inner panels, consecutively hinged first end panel, first side panel, first partition panel, first connecting panel, second partition panel and adhesion panel extending from adjacent end edges of each of said inner panels, consecutively hinged second end panel and second side panels extending from each of the adjacent other ends of said inner panels, bottom closure panels hinged to the lateral edges of said first and second side panels, and bottom closure flap-s hinged to the lateral edges of said end panels, said adhesion panels being adhered to an intermediate portion of said first side panels, said connecting panels being adhered to an intermediate portion of said inner panels, the free end portions of said second side panels being adhered to said first side panels, the end edges of the bottom closure panels attached to said second side panels being adhered to the remote end edges of the bottom closure panels attached to said first side panels, said bottom closure panels having interlocking elements, said partition panels forming a plurality of compartments when folded about their respective hinge connections, and'said bottom closure flaps being folded over the adjacent open end of said tray and locked together to form a set-up tray.-

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Miller Jan. 9, 1912 2,693,297 Bolding Nov. 2, 1954 

